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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25420255">Victory Lap</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ASongofIceandHope/pseuds/ASongofIceandHope'>ASongofIceandHope</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hunger Games Prequel - Fandom, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes - Fandom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Hate Sex, Porn With Plot, Post-Canon, Rape/Non-con Elements, Smut, The Author Regrets Nothing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 05:02:00</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,764</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25420255</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ASongofIceandHope/pseuds/ASongofIceandHope</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>She really thought hiding from him was going to be so easy. He thought she knew him better than that.</p>
<p>Post-canon newly elected President Snow receives the best inauguration gift money could buy.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Coriolanus Snow/Lucy Gray Baird, Lucy Gray Baird/Corliolanus Snow</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>79</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Victory Lap</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I apologize in advance...</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tigris had said it would take him ten years to figure out what had become of Lucy Gray. True to his nature, Coriolanus did it in five. It certainly wasn’t easy; between finishing at the University, devising new technology for the Games at the Citadel, and kickstarting his political career, he had been remarkably busy. But considering his surplus of resources, courtesy of the Plinths, Coriolanus was able to send what was, in essence, his own private company of Peacekeepers out to District 12 and the wilderness beyond. It was easy to employ retired Peacekeepers to work for a family such as the Snows — especially when they were paid handsomely. Still, his quest was not without its setbacks. Though when the small cohort searching for his tribute — his victor, he should say — suffered a vicious attack from what could only be called an army of snakes, Coriolanus knew he was close.</p>
<p>The news of the snake attack reached the Snow penthouse just days before Coriolanus’ inauguration. He was to become the youngest president in the history of Panem, at the tender age of twenty-three; though the few who knew what he’d endured would describe him as worldly well beyond his years.</p>
<p>Ma Plinth had been making a fuss over a fresh pie — there had been many a celebratory pie since the election in November — when Coriolanus received the correspondence. He politely bowed out of the kitchen, stuffing the letter into his pocket and making the short trek up to the Grandma’am’s greenhouse to read it in solitude. Though it had been shy of three years since the Snow matriarch’s passing, Coriolanus and Tigris maintained her roses in her honor. Coriolanus noted the white roses were looking promising, and decided to wear one to his inauguration before opening the letter.</p>
<p>His eyes darted across the page, devouring the news like a starving man. Coriolanus didn’t even bother to read who had specifically sent it — a formality he usually took note of when he sent his men new commands — before sending three words to the cohort commander via a new communicuff:</p>
<p>
  <i>Bring her in.</i>
</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*****</p>
</div>Coriolanus stepped down from the gilt chariot, relieved to be at his new home. The day’s festivities for inauguration had been indulgent to the point of gluttony. And while Coriolanus enjoyed a good meal and nice whiskey as much as the next man, his mind was elsewhere. He’d wondered throughout the dinner, as Lucky Flickerman cajoled and analyzed those seated at the head table, if Dr. Gaul knew what was waiting for him at the Presidential Mansion. Coriolanus knew he’d covered his tracks, even when taking the latest tech from the Citadel. After all, only two weeks after he’d snatched the communicuff, a similar tech had gone on the market for civilians.<p>Still, he was never sure what all the woman knew.</p>
<p>He tried his best to push the thought back from his mind as the approached the newly refurbished mansion. It was resplendent, with a warm glow emanating both from within and around the classical structure. The Grandma’am told him once that the building was based on a presidential mansion from long ago, but Coriolanus had his doubts. </p>
<p>Shaking off old memories, Coriolanus tried not to look into the cameras as he mounted the stairs and ascended to the grand entrance. His new servants, all Avoxes, flanked both sides of the massive stairway, with Peacekeepers mingled in between. </p>
<p><i>Fifty steps</i>, he thought, managing the slightest of smiles for a particularly close camera. <i>That’s all that’s between you and that little snake. Fifty, forty-nine, forty-eight...</i></p>
<p>Knowing he had to give the media more than a half-grin, Coriolanus composed himself once he reached the massive doors, turning back and giving a practiced grin-and-wave. A gloved butler reached for the ornate door handle and opened it for him, and with one final stride Coriolanus was finally inside. And, most importantly, he was finally alone.</p>
<p>The commander of his private task force, a gaunt, older man from District 1 by the name of Thread, approached Coriolanus as he loosened his tie.</p>
<p>“Where did you put her?” he asked.</p>
<p>“Second guest bedroom, President Snow,” Thread replied. Coriolanus nodded and ruffled his curls before mounting the staircase. “Mr. President, you should be warned—”</p>
<p>“It’s quite alright, Thread,” Coriolanus cut him off. “There’s nothing she could do that would surprise me. Not anymore.”</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*****</p>
</div>Coriolanus stuffed his tie into his pocket and shrugged off his jacket. He felt very much like his old self, like the self his very special guest had met near five years prior. The white rose he’d worn on his lapel was now being twirled lazily between his thumb and middle finger. After all, what sort of reunion would it be if he didn’t bring her a token?<p>Swallowing hard, he turned the doorknob to the guest room nearest to his new bedroom. The door glided smoothly on its hinges and his shoes no longer clicked on the marble floors, smothered by the plush, cream-colored carpet. </p>
<p>His pale blue eyes met warm hazel and Coriolanus crushed the white rose in the palm of his hand.</p>
<p>“Hello, <i>Coryo</i>,” she greeted, shifting uncomfortably in the seat she was restrained on. “Some way to treat a lady. Oughta come untie me and maybe I’d congratulate you on your election. Funny to think that the Covey know the President of Panem.”</p>
<p>“I would untie you, Lucy Gray, but you’re not much of a lady, are you? You’re a killer.” <i>A ghost</i>, the voice in his head echoed. <i>Like that stupid song</i>. </p>
<p>“So are you,” she spat, leaning forward so far that the back legs of the chair rose. </p>
<p>At one time her anger and vitriol would have sent Coriolanus’ stomach rolling in an unsettling way; now, hardened and bitter as he was, it simply drew a laugh from between his lips. </p>
<p>“Yes,” he agreed. “Yes we are.” </p>
<p>“I am nothing like you,” Lucy Gray laughed. “You think that all those horrible things you’ve done — betray Sejanus, kill Mayfair, and who knows what else — you think you’ve done them for the sake of order, when really you’ve just done them to save your own skin. You’re a damned coward, Coriolanus Snow. A fine and crafty one, maybe, but a coward just the same.”</p>
<p>“And what of you, Lucy Gray? Running off, leaving me in the middle of the wilderness, setting up that trap for me... you wanted me dead,” Coriolanus challenged.</p>
<p>“So is that why you brought me all the way back here?” she questioned. “To kill me? Make sure I die in the place I was supposed to five years ago?”</p>
<p>Another laugh escaped from somewhere deep inside him, and the tone nearly startled Coriolanus. It was less the deep but melodic laugh he worked to maintain, and more something sinister... almost deranged. </p>
<p>“Oh, that would be far too easy,” he hummed. “If I wanted to kill you, do you really think I would have spent so much time and money having men hunt you down and bring you back alive? No, no, Lucy Gray. You know me too well to really think that of me.” Coriolanus cautiously closed the gap between them, running a hand through her tangled curls before grabbing a fistful of them and yanking her head back. “I brought you here to get what I’m owed. And... you’re going to put on a little show.”</p>
<p>“Haven’t had much reason to put on a show as of late,” she grimaced. </p>
<p>“Well you will now,” Coriolanus smirked.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*****</p>
</div>It was amusing how quickly Lucky Flickerman agreed to come to the Presidential Mansion when Coriolanus gave him the scoop that Lucy Gray had returned to the Capitol and was staying as his special guest. Coriolanus ordered a few Avoxes to clean and dress Lucy Gray. After all, if the victors and tributes were carted out in finery and made to feel at home in the Capitol, there would be nothing but the best for his victor.<p>As Flickerman arrived, Coriolanus checked on the progress being made. Lucy Gray’s curls had been tamed into a simple updo, twisted and pinned up to reveal her slender neck. She was dressed in one of Tigris’ latest designs: a iridescent gown made of a fine chain mesh. It caught the light and reflected and refracted it into as many colors as the rainbow. He’d picked out thinking of her rainbow dress. The Covey, after all, did love color. </p>
<p>Her back was turned as he stood just past the doorway. Coriolanus eyed the silvery marks which scored her shoulder blades and wondered if he simply hadn’t noticed them before or if they were new, a product of her years in the wilderness.</p>
<p>“Now, that’s enough of making a fuss over me,” Lucy Gray huffed waving dismissively as an Avox held out a powder puff. “Nobody’s gonna care much what I look like.”</p>
<p>“I’d beg to differ,” Coriolanus interjected. </p>
<p>At the sound of his voice she started and turned. The little bit of makeup she’d allowed the Avoxes to apply brought out her eyes and the fullness of her lips. The soft, muted red paint on them was a far cry from the greasy smudges she’d worn at the Reaping or even at her interview. Had Coriolanus not known better, he could have easily mistaken her for Capitol. </p>
<p>“Ready to trot me out there like a prized hog?” she crossed her arms and her red lips turned into a sneer.</p>
<p>“Just treat it like an old performance and we’ll have nothing to worry about,” Coriolanus smirked.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*****</p>
</div>It was apparent to him instantly that whatever had happened to her in the wilderness had dampened some of that sparkle, that refinement he’d so admired in her those years ago. As he led her into the sitting room which had been set up for the interview, her fingers tightened around his forearm as the broadcast lights hit her. Lucy Gray raised one hand to cover her eyes for a moment before Lucky approached. Then, it was almost as if she’d never left.<p>“Well, if it isn’t my old friend Lucky Flickerman,” she greeted, holding out one hand to him. Lucky chuckled and bowed deeply to her, taking the offered hand and kissing it. </p>
<p>It was a meaningless gesture, but Coriolanus still clenched his teeth.</p>
<p>“Miss Lucy Gray Baird, you are... a vision,” Lucky complimented. “Coriolanus always went on about how you were more Capitol than District; leave it to our president to be right all along.” </p>
<p>A unamused manager swept in, sending Lucky off to makeup as she arranged Coriolanus and Lucy Gray on a gilded sofa. She informed them of where the cameras would be located, and then another makeup artist came up and gave Coriolanus’ forehead a quick dusting of powder. One of the Avoxes followed close behind and pinned a fresh rose to his lapel. In the corner of his eye, he could see Lucy Gray wince at the sight of the perfectly blossoming bud. </p>
<p>“Alright,” the stony manager shouted. “Quiet on set! We’re broadcasting live across Panem in ten... nine... eight... seven... six... five...” </p>
<p>The lights and cameras closed in and Lucky switched on to performance mode, which was somehow more flamboyant than his usual persona. </p>
<p>“Welcome all! I am Lucky Flickerman and I am coming to you live from the Capitol with a very special treat. After seemingly disappearing into anonymity for five years after her stunning victory in the Hunger Games, Lucy Gray Baird, your special friend and mine, has graciously blessed the Capitol once again with her presence — but this time, as the very special guest of our benevolent president, Coriolanus Snow!” He flashed a painfully hammy grin at camera one before turning to the pair. “How does it feel, Lucy Gray, to be back? And with such... renowned company?”</p>
<p>“I’m just happy I get to see all my friends again,” Lucy Gray chuckled through her teeth. “Especially you, Lucky; I sure do hope you’ll let me come on and sing a song for all my fans soon.”</p>
<p>“Any time, my dear, any time!” Lucky laughed. “Now a question for our commander-in-chief: President Snow, what was it that drove you to bring Lucy Gray back to the Capitol? Unrequited love, perhaps?”</p>
<p>“That couldn’t be nearer to the truth, Lucky,” Coriolanus hummed. “I... I have loved Lucy Gray from the first time I heard her sing, when we all watched her at the Reaping. It ate me up inside, knowing that there was nothing in my power that could bring her back here after she won. Nothing, that is, until now. I know there will be many who think my actions foolhardy; that bringing a District woman into the Capitol is the very reason to not have a young president, but... take this action as a guarantee of my... passion for justice and righteousness. Bringing Lucy Gray back to me righted so many wrongs; I will do the same for Panem.”</p>
<p>“Well I’d say that’s why we elected you, because of your passion for justice and righteousness,” Lucky replied. “Now, I can’t help but ask... are we going to be hearing wedding bells anytime soon, President Snow?”</p>
<p>“I can’t say, Lucky,” Coriolanus managed a bashful grin. “Maybe if Lucy Gray will have me...”</p>
<p>Lucky gave a conspiratorial wink and turned to the camera set straight on to the trio, trying his best to dazzle his imaginary audience. “You heard it here first, folks! All is bliss here in the Capitol for Lucy Gray and our President Snow!”</p>
<p>A few more mindless exchanges occurred before Lucky signed off. Lucy Gray bolted to her feet but plastered a fake smile on her face, exchanging niceties with Lucky until Coriolanus rose to his feet.</p>
<p>“Far too much excitement for one day,” he stated. “It’s time to retire, wouldn’t you agree?” He looked at Lucy Gray, offering his arm.</p>
<p>“Yes,” she mumbled. “It is late.”</p>
<p>“Well I won’t keep you two,” Lucky winked. “Thank you for this juicy exclusive!”</p>
<p>“Of course,” Coriolanus nodded to him.</p>
<p>Without another word, he stiffly escorted Lucy Gray back to her room. Coriolanus could tell she was glad to almost be rid of him by the manner in which she willingly submitted herself to the attentions of her Avoxes.</p>
<p>“I wish they could talk to me,” she mumbled to him. </p>
<p>“It’s all the better that they can’t,” was all Coriolanus said before retiring to the executive suite.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*****</p>
</div>Alone with his thoughts, Coriolanus scrubbed furiously at his skin in the shower. He felt the sting of another blister forming inside his mouth, and scowled at the metallic tang of the blood seeping from it. Damn the stupid party leader who wouldn’t accept his generous gift of fine whiskey without Coriolanus partaking. The antidote had worked just fine as far as saving his life was concerned, but not well enough.<p>His mind wandered from his apparent permanent injuries to his honored guest. Lucy Gray was just two doors away. A matter of a few steps and the turning of a couple doorknobs was all that stood between Coriolanus and what was rightfully his.</p>
<p><i>Well, that more than settles that</i>, he thought as he turned off the water. Coriolanus hardly bothered with tousling his damp curls and wrapped himself in the grey bathrobe hanging beside the shower. He left a trail of water on the marble tiles as he departed his bathroom, his mind set on one task and one task only.</p>
<p>Entering with not even a knock, Coriolanus barged into Lucy Gray’s room. Her hair had been freed from its modest updo and fell down to her shoulders, curls sticking this way and that. The red paint still stained her lips, but the rest of her makeup had been removed. The red robe Coriolanus had chosen for her hung from her shoulders, tied at her waist haphazardly. <i>There</i> was his Lucy Gray. His victor. </p>
<p>“I suppose you don’t have to knock anymore,” she muttered. </p>
<p>“No,” Coriolanus hummed. “No, I suppose I don’t.” He approached lithely, knowing that, here, he was absolutely in charge. There were no serpents lurking in her red robe. She watched him warily in her vanity mirror, only turning once he stood behind her, his fingers curled around the back of her chair. The motion caused her robe to slip, revealing the slightest hint of her full breasts.</p>
<p>“Whatever it is you want, Coriolanus Snow, I don’t have it.”</p>
<p>“Quite the contrary. I think you do.” He placed a finger under her chin and tilted it upward. Lucy Gray’s face contorted with rage and she slapped him. The stinging of his cheek only spurred Coriolanus on. Wrapping both hands around her wrists, he hauled her to her feet. </p>
<p>Lucy Gray’s eyes flashed with fear only momentarily. She gathered herself and laughed in Coriolanus’ face, shaking her head.</p>
<p>“You’re no brute, Coriolanus,” she smirked. “You are many things, but a brute is not one.”</p>
<p>His lips curled into a sneer as he released her wrists, snaking one arm around her waist and holding her close to his body while his free hand grabbed a fistful of her curls and yanked her head back. A shaky breath left her parted lips as her warm eyes frantically searched his cool ones. She felt soft and warm against him. Blood pounded in his ears and rushed lower. Coriolanus felt his cock begin to stiffen, and, due to their proximity, the slight upward quirk of Lucy Gray’s eyebrows told him that she could tell too.</p>
<p>“Oh, is that what you want?” she asked. “You want to fuck me?” Her now freed hands wandered, grazing his stomach before reaching his growing erection. Coriolanus swallowed hard as she began to pump one hand up and down the rigid length. </p>
<p>“Not just that,” Coriolanus murmured, releasing her hair and grazing the slender curve of her neck with his fingers. “I want to remind you...” he wrapped his hand around her throat and squeezed ever-so gently. “I want to remind you who you belong to. You’re mine, Lucy Gray. You have been ever since the Reaping. And now I’m simply... claiming what is rightfully mine.”</p>
<p>His lips crushed against hers, drawing a small gasp from Lucy Gray. Her hand released his cock and Coriolanus backed her toward the bed. Her fingers fumbled with the sash of her robe and Coriolanus slipped it off her shoulders, ducking his head down to kiss and suck and nip at her breasts. She whimpered softly, but her hands told a different story: she raked her fingers through his curls and tugged them, holding him close to her chest. </p>
<p>They tumbled back onto the bed, a mess of limbs and sighs. Coriolanus set his sights lower now, tracing a lazy line down Lucy Gray’s stomach to the coarse hair growing at the apex of her thighs. He teased her puffy, swollen folds, smirking at the huff she released. </p>
<p>“What?” Coriolanus chuckled. “You didn’t think I wasn’t going to enjoy this, did you?”</p>
<p>“No, I just—” Lucy Gray whimpered as his thumb swiped across her clit. “Fuck you.”</p>
<p>Coriolanus didn’t respond and simply locked eyes with her as he followed the trail his finger had traveled with his lips. Lucy Gray’s eyelashes fluttered as he pressed a searing kiss to her inner thigh, just inches from the slick warmth of her pussy. Her breathing turned shaky as he moved closer to where she wanted him, and whined when Coriolanus kissed her other thigh instead.</p>
<p>“Do you need something?” he murmured before lowering his lips to her inner thigh once more, sucking hard. He pulled away and admired the faint bruise blooming on her skin. </p>
<p>“You know what I need,” Lucy Gray huffed. </p>
<p>“Mmm,” was all Coriolanus said in return, peppering her with the softest kisses he could manage. He watched her hands fist the sheets in frustration as she wriggled her hips. </p>
<p>Finally, he decided to satisfy her. Coriolanus ran his tongue through her folds, tasting her wetness, before wrapping his lips around her swollen clit. He sucked it and flicked his tongue against it, drawing moans from Lucy Gray. She writhed against his mouth, but Coriolanus grasped her hips tight, forcing her to take the whole sensation of his tongue on her. </p>
<p>Her cries became higher and more desperate and her legs trembled; Coriolanus kept a steady pace, knowing she was close. Her climax came hard and fast, with a scream escaping her lips and her back arching. Lucy Gray stared down at him with hazy eyes as Coriolanus rose to his feet and removed his robe. Her tongue peeped out and wet her lips at the sight of his cock. </p>
<p>“Turn around,” he ordered. “Feet on the ground.”</p>
<p>“Give a girl a minute,” she grumbled, tipping her head back. “All you Capitol folks, always wanting more, more, more... what will you do when the districts can’t give anymore, Coriolanus Snow?” Coriolanus grit his teeth and flipped her over himself. </p>
<p>“There’s always a way,” he grunted in her ear as he buried his cock inside her dripping pussy. “People are easy to control.”</p>
<p>Lucy Gray gasped softly, but didn’t ignore his words. “Not everyone thinks like you,” she responded before he drew another shuddering cry from her. </p>
<p>Coriolanus chuckled and tightened his grip on her hips, thrusting forcefully into her. </p>
<p>“You do.” He smirked, pleased with himself for having the last word. </p>
<p>Her fingers clutched the sheets beneath her in tight fists as he filled her. She muffled her cries into the mattress, which Coriolanus quickly resolved by taking one hand and yanking her head to the side by her hair. </p>
<p>“<i>Fuck</i>!” Lucy Gray cried, a small grimace gracing her face. </p>
<p>Coriolanus knew he wasn’t going to last much longer, between the sounds coming from her parted lips and the slick warmth of her cunt. His hips stuttered and his stomach tensed; Lucy Gray gasped softly beneath him, her legs quivering and nearly giving out when he rubbed her clit in quick circles. She came just a few pants after him, and the two stilled.</p>
<p>“Well...” she breathed. “This... This does not change a thing, Coriolanus Snow.”</p>
<p>At her hasty refute, Coriolanus pulled his softening cock from her pussy and turned to retrieve his robe. He ran a hand through his curls, hoping to beaten them before he returned to his room. The tart smell of her cunt lingered on his fingers, he noticed.</p>
<p>“Of course not,” he agreed. “Why, this only proves what I’ve known for years, Lucy Gray. You. Belong. To me.”</p>
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